Vessel



J. H; SCHLUETER.

VESSEL.

APPLICATION FILED JULY 23,1917.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 1.

J. H. SCHLUETER.

VESSEL.

APPLICATION-FILED JULY 23,1917.

UNITED STATES JOHN H. SCI-ILUETER,

or CINCINNATI, OHIO.

VESSEL.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Apr. 13, 1920.

Application filed July 23, 1917. SerialNo. 182,226.

new and useful Improvements in'Vessels, of

which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to the construction of hulls or shellsof vessels.

The object of my invention is to so construct the hulls of vessels as to be proof against submarine or other torpedoes or other destructive agents and to insure against sinking the vessel from any cause. My invention is also well adapted for use in the construction of hangars, arsenals, munition factories and stores, fortifications and other structures which it is desired to secure against destruction.

My invention consists in the parts and in the construction, combination and arrangement of parts; also in the materials used relative to each other as well as in the methods of construction and arrangement as more particularly set forth herein and defined in the claims.

While my invention is adapted for various uses, I have illustrated it as embodied in a vessel adapted for war purposes either offensive or defensive. It may be effectively used for submarines, submarine chasers and destroyers, mine plows,rams, cruisers, transports and war vessels of all kinds, as well as merchant vessels of various types.

In the drawings which-serve to illustrate a preferred embodiment of my invention:

Figure 1 is a central horizontal section of one end of the hull of the vessel;

Fig. 2 is a similar view of one end of the hull provided with cable armor and steel ram;

Fig. 3 is a Fig. 1;

Fig. 4 is a transverse section through sa v Fig. 5 is an end view of plankings' assembled; I

Fig. 6 is a perspective view of the preferred construction of end-wood buffer;

Fig. 7 is a modification of the same;

Fig. 8 is a fragmentary view showing the plankings and bufiers assembled and secured longitudinal and circumferential cables; Fig. 9 is a side view of the buffers assembled and secured together by longitudinal and circumferential cables;

transverse section through i I Fig. 10 is a modification of the same;

Fig. 11 is transverse section of a modified construction of hull;

. 12 is a fragmentary perspective view of plankings assembled.

.Fig. 13 is a fragmentary view of the cable armor;

Fig. 14 is a perspective view of the hatchway frame. Y

Hulls made according to my invention are preferably constructed as follows: In order to secure the maximum resistance against shocks made by torpedoes or other projectiles, contact with other vessels or from any other cause, the hull is constructed cylindrically with tapering ends as shown in Figs. 1, 2, 3 and 4:, but when desired the form may more nearly resemble the ordinary constructionof hull in common use, withdeck as shown in Fig. 11, it being understood that my invention is-capable of application anduse in connection with any form of vessel.

The vessel made according to my invention is constructed mostly of wood reinforced and bound together by metallic cables, rods or chains and suitably braced by wood or steel partitions and braces.

In order to form the hull I provide a series of plankings I of a given thickness, preferably alternating with plankings 2 of a different thickness in order to form channels 3 on the outer sides of the plankings as shown in Fig. 8. These plankings are each provided with a series of holes 4: extending transversely therethrough from't'op to bottom to receive cables or'rods 5 (preferably flexible) which bind said plankings securely together circumferentially as well as longitudinally. The plankings are preferably provided with grooves 8 in their respective edges to receive metal tongues or splines 9 to effect a more perfect joint and union of the longitudinal edges of the abutting plankings. Theabutting ends of the plankings l and 2 are preferably beveled, although a butt joint may be used and in order to increase 1 the resisting power, break-j oint construction should be used. The ends of the cables 5 are preferably secured at their respective ends to flanges 6 of metal anchor plate 7 byfany well known and suitable means such as shown at 23, in Fig. 11.

Upon the outer surface of the plankings 1, as above described, (or such equivalent construction'as may occur to those skilled in this.

art after becoming familiar" with my con! struction) I mount and secure a series of end-wood buffers 10 shown in detail in Figs. 7, 8 and 9 to form the outer or bufiing surface of the vessel. These are preferably constructed (as shown in Fig. 6) of a rectangular body 11 having a circular buffer head 12 upon which I secure (preferably by shrinking) a metallic band 13, preferably some distance from the outer end, as shown in Fig. 7, so that it will yield a greater limit Without splitting when struck by any object, and also to lessen the force of the impact when so struck. These bands serve to cause the projecting end-wood to batter or crush down when struck a blow and to maintain the same in substantially its normal position without shattering. Holes 14 and 15 extend transversely through said body to receive cables 16 and 17 or equivalent means for binding said buffers together upon the plankings. If desired, the bufiers may be provided with squared heads 12 adapted to receive squared bands 13 which may extend flush with the end of the head 12, but preferably the end of the wood will project outwardly beyond said band. In these constructions also the inner end of the buffer is cut away on one side to form a shoulder so that when mounted in position in the channels 3 as shown in Fig. 8, the shoulder will rest upon the thicker and the inner end thereof will rest upon the thinner plankings. The buffers shown in Fig. 8 are provided with holes 14; and 15 to receive the cables 16 and 17 respectively. The circumferential cables 16 may be secured at their respective ends in the same manner as the ends of the cables 5 are secured, as shown at 23 of Fig. 11. The longitudinal cables 17 are suitably secured at their ends to the metallic ram 18 or by other suitable means in the endwood buffers or otherwise. Staples or nail hooks may be used to drive and hold cables 20, 21 and 22, close together while wrapping same.

Any kind of wood may be used, but soft or pliable woods which possess great flexible or yielding qualities, as well as those possessing waterproofing qualities, such as pine, cyprus and sycamore, are preferable.

An economical advantage in the construction of hulls of vessels made according to my invention is the utilization of small blocks or pieces of wood which would otherwise be lost, thus avoiding waste of material. Knotty timber which is useless for most purposes is preferable for this.

Preferably, or when desired, the wood, in order to render it more durable and impe vious to water, may be treated with creosote, or equivalent material, and the joints between the respective end-wood bufi'ers and between plankings and end-wood buffers are preferably filled with tar, pitch, or other viscous material alone or mixed with sand or other non-flowing material, thus serving to bind said parts together in a substantially unitary structure whereby it will yield throughout its entire area under heavy or severe blows at any point without puncture or leakage. The tar or equivalent material serves to add to the yielding and resisting qualities of the structure.

The inner surface of the hull may be lined with sheet metal or other suitable material to make it fire and waterproof and to add to the resisting qualities where unusually destructive agents are liable to be used against the vessel.

The hull is provided with the usual hatchways, ports and other openings, and these are faced by heavy solid metallic frames to which the ends of the cables running in a line therewith are suitably secured.

The port holes may be provided with suitable sockets for the purpose of mounting guns by means of ball and socket joints.

The hatchways, ports and other openings may be provided with heavy metallic covers or may be formed of the plankings and endwood buffers mounted in metallic frames and in either case they may be hinged and suitably and securely bolted in position. At points within the hull where hatchways, ports and other openings occur, I prefer reinforcing the structure by connecting such openings with I-beams mounted upon the inner surface, said beams being constructed of wood or metal. Additional bracing may be made by partitions or bulk-heads 19 extending transversely, and these may be of such material as is found most suitable for the purpose, depending upon the kind of vessel or other structure in which it is used.

An ordinary merchant vessel may not re quire the buffers 10 if securely wrapped with circumferential and longitudinal cables, to protect the plankings and to distribute the impact of a blow throughout the hull. But for aggressive war purposes, such as battleships, rams or submarine destroyers, added security is obtained by the combined use of plankings 1 and 2 and buffers 10 mounted and secured as above described and securely wrapped by circumferential cables 20, longitudinal cables 21 and outer circumferential cables 22, as shown in Fig. 2, all of said cables being suitably secured.

The cables or rods when made of iron or steel are preferably galvanized to prevent rusting. An advantage in the use of wrapping the outer surface with cables is the convenience and ease in removing any barnacles which may adhere thereto, by simply pounding upon the cables thereby causing them to readily drop off.

While I have set forth a hull of reinforced wood construction, any other soft, fibrous material having the qualities of yielding resistance maybe employed.

shape may be curved to vary from a cylinder, or may be made to more nearly conform to the regulation type of vessels, in which event departure from curved to straight and angular shapes may be resorted to without departing from the scope or spirit of my invention.

In the construction shown in Fig. 11 the usual deck is maintained, and guns for all purposes, including aeroplane or other wide ange guns may be suitably mounted thereon.

A vessel of any size now in use when constructed according to my invention is of such comparatively Herculean strength intimately connecting every part with every other part throughout its length as that when dealt the most severe blow at any point or when set upon its center only it will not break in two, because under those conditions the stress extends from every angle and part of the hull, thus equalizing and distributing the stress throughout its entire area so as to avoid injury under such circumstances.

My construction of wood-plankings combined together by flexible cables combined with end-wood buflers secured together and to said plankings as herein set forth, and also with the interior bracings, results in a flexible, yielding structure which, when struck at any one point distributes the impact throughout the entire vessel thereby reducing the shock and damage to a minimum.

The merit of the construction and arrangement of the several parts of my invention will be at once recognized when it is remembered that contact of a hard object, such as a highly tempered torpedo head or cannon ball, with a softer and yielding object which distributes the impact throughout the surface struck, will be less damaging than when one hard object strikes another equally hard object in which latter case the impact is confined to the part struck and a puncture necessarily results.

While I have set forth a particular embodiment of my invention and have suggested various uses to which it may be put, I wish it to be understood, as comprehending within its scope and spirit any useful purpose for which it is adapted and also that it includes such various modifications and equivalent constructions as legitimately fall within its definitions as set forth in the following claims:

1. In a structure of the character described, longitudinal plankings arranged adjacent one another, flexible cables binding said plankings together, end-wood buffers mounted upon their ends upon said plankings, and means for securing said end-wood buffers together and to said plankings.

2. In a structure of the character described, longitudinal plankings arranged adjacent one another, flexible cables binding said plankings together, end-wood buffers mounted upon said plankings, means for securing said end-wood buffers together and to said plankings, and cables covering and secured upon the outer surface of said endwood buffers.

3. In a structure of the character described, longitudinal plankings arranged adjacent one another, flexible cables binding said plankings together, end-wood buffers mounted upon said plankings, means for securing said end-wood buffers together and to said plankings, cables mounted and secured upon the outer surface of said endwood buffers, and cables secured across said first mentioned cables.

4:. In a structure of the character described, plankings arranged adjacent one another, flexible cables binding said plankings together and cables mounted and secured upon the outer surface of said plankings.

5. In a structure of the character described, plankings arranged edge to edge, said plankings being alternately thick and thin to form a channel upon the outer surface, buflers adapted to rest in said channel and upon the intermediate or thicker plankings, and means for securing said plankings and buffers together and to each other.

6. In a structure of the character described, plankings flexibly secured together and a plurality of superposed layers of cables mounted and secured thereon.

7. In a structure of the character described, plankings flexibly secured together, and parallel layers of cables mounted and secured thereon.

8. In a structure of the character described, plankings flexibly secured together, parallel layers of cables mounted and secured thereon, and cables superposed and extending across said first mentioned cables and suitably mounted and secured thereon.

9. In a structure of the character described, plankings flexibly secured together, parallel layers of cables mounted and secured thereon, a layer of cables arranged parallel with each other thereon and extending across said first mentioned cables and an outer layer of cables arranged parallel with each other and extending across said last mentioned cables.

10. In a structure of the character described, plankings arranged edge to edge, said plankings being alternately thick and thin, to form a channel upon the outer surface, bufi'ers adapted to rest in said channel and upon the intermediate or thicker plankings, means for securing said plankings and buffers together and to each other, said buffers being each cut away at one end to form a shoulder and extension, said extension being adapted to rest in said channel and said shoulder adapted to rest upon the adjacent thicker planking.

11. In a vessel, a hull having plankings suitably securedtogether and a plurality of juxtaposed buffers each resting on one end against said plankings and having a band thereon in combination with flexible cables extending transversely through said bufiers at angles to each other.

12. In a structure of the character clescribed plankings suitably assembled and secured and having channels upon the outer JOHN H. SCHLUETER. Witnesses:

JAMES N. RAMSEY, HELEN MAE SOHLUETER. 

